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Structural Analysis of Micro-Entrepreneurs’ Performance in Islamic Microfinance Institution: A Moderating Effect of Geographical Location

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Micro-entrepreneurs have contributed significantly to the socio-economic development of low-income households, which ensures long-term economic prosperity. Despite this, financial constraint is one of the primary challenges that micro-entrepreneurs face. Formal financial institutions regard them as a high-risk and high-cost market segment. Acknowledging their financial constraints, Islamic microfinance institutions, such as Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM), are essential in providing the necessary financial assistance based on the Shari’ah concept. As evident from a growing body of research, entrepreneurial success is also dependent on other entrepreneur attributes such as social capital, human capital, and ICT usage. Thus, this study aimed to examine effect of Islamic microfinancing, social capital, human capital, and ICT usage on micro-entrepreneurs’ performance, focusing on Islamic microfinance institution in Malaysia. This study also aimed to identify whether a geographical location moderated for ICT usage that may influence micro-entrepreneurs’ performance. A total of 416 micro-entrepreneurs as clients of AIM were involved and selected from the states of Selangor and Pahang, representing urban and rural regions. The partial least squares – structural equation model (PLS-SEM) investigated the relationship among the variables. The study found that Islamic microfinancing, social capital, human capital, and ICT usage significantly influenced the micro-entrepreneurs’ performance. Geographical location has a moderating effect on ICT usage and the micro-entrepreneurs’ performance. This study can provide a theoretical contribution to the extension of the resource-based view (RBV) as a fundamental theory in predicting performance. In terms of practical contribution, the findings would be beneficial for Islamic microfinance institutions to develop a more effective action plan for achieving their objectives, such as improving infrastructure, increasing knowledge and awareness about ICT usage, and shifting business strategies to the digital economy. However, this study is limited to the selected respondents, specifically micro-entrepreneurs from AIM. Thus, future research could expand on a different set of data collection.
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